Artificiala
by Djingin
Summary: The creation of Edward was indeed that of wonder, but, whose to say that The Inventor was alone in his endevours? OC'ness continuation of film plotline.
1. Prologue

_Ola! This story is quite old… in fact I think I wrote it when I was 16/17 and I'm 22 so theres a bit of dust to it! Anyway, from the prologue to chapter 4 I've read through and edited a lot of the text, it still has the same body and storyline however my writing style and taste has changed quite a lot so I wanted to reflect that in the work. Please feel free to read from the start, critique and so on. _

Prologue.

Since the death of Jim and Edward, the inhabitants of the small neighbourhood overlooked by the old mansion had grown mixed emotions over their behaviour and almost discriminate judgement towards the boy named Edward. During the years that followed some of the small population moved away – unnerved by the towering hill that still held the memories of the boy who had changed most of the resident's lives. The Boggs family still stayed put, both Peg and Bill determined not to let the short but eventful stay of Edward disrupt what they had put into the neighbourhood.

For the first few months, neighbours who had once enjoyed happy conversation with them had shied away – the suggestion of hidden talk of the family always in their thoughts. But gradually as the winter turned into spring, and then into summer, the temptations of friendly barbeques helped to bring the families back together.

Kim had become a changed girl after what had happened with her not so dearly missed ex-boyfriend and beloved Edward. Her terrifyingly exciting story of the end to the boys by each other's hands had led to hours, if not days of questions not from the police but from the neighbours; they had not been satisfied by her initial story and many believed she was keeping Edward in her home or perhaps visiting him in the night. However this was put to a stop once the county Sheriff closed up the gates for good, a thick heavy padlock glinting to all who thought about venturing to get a closer look.

It was not until the following winter that snow descended on the colourful little array of houses, a cool remembrance of the winter before. For hours, on many a night, Kim would gaze out of her chilled window toward the dimly lit confines of the hilltop house – her tired eyes playing tricks with the shadows, tempting her heart to flutter if she caught a glimpse of the mysterious Edward. Sometimes she would go up to the gates, her fingers loosely curled around the old bars with a frustration that befitted a cat trying to get to the bird within a cage. But her ability to enter the confines of the wild gardens were dashed as someone was nearly always present nearby – and when she thought about it, why would she need to go into the walls of the mysterious house, Edward was dead of course.

Years trickled by with the sweet pace that was of suburban life and soon Kim was off to University – her teenage fantasies of ever meeting Edward again left with her stuffed animals. Unbeknownst to her she would not see the place of her childhood for another ten years. Peg, now left with only one child to care for, became deeply interested in painting. Her adoration for make-ups seemed to be mirrored in her love for paints – in her mind there was not much difference between the two.

It had been three years since the neighbourhood had disconnected itself with the hilltop and its towering house and many people just thought of the eventful months with Edward as just a dream that each of them shared. So when a taxi drove into the little neighbourhood, why would anyone expect that what sat within the backseat of the yellow car would remind them of what had become just a dream?


	2. Chapter 1

Clouds had descended over the colourful neighbourhood, making dark patterns on the gardens, roads, and houses. It was mid-morning and most of the husbands were busy at work. The women of the neighbourhood took to their routine tasks, while those who hired help to clean sunned themselves in their gardens. It wasn't unusual to have visitors come to the small neighbourhood, whether they be relatives of a family that lived in its confines or just a friend. A taxi drove casually along the smooth road; a few sunglasses were raised in curiosity. The taxi stopped just shy of eight feet away from the tall gate. A couple of the women outside their homes had locked eyes on the car upon realising where the stranger was intending to go. A few moments and the person inside the car got out, the driver turning the taxi around quite quickly and driving away from the hooded figure that now stood but a few feet away from the gate. The stranger appeared to look around before walking up to the gate, seemingly testing to see if they were locked or not. Just as the stranger had arrived Peg had exited her front door, about to begin her monthly rounds with her trusty Avon case. She too, like the majority who were in their front gardens noticed the new resident, she squinted with curiosity,

"Now who would ever want to go in there?" She felt a tightening in her stomach as the memories of that place and its past inhabitants came into her mind, "…who indeed"

"Peg!" a friendly voice called to her, that of Helens who's hair had now grown back to its original, natural design, her voice became hushed as she rushed up to Peg, "You know who that is?" she frowned in a confused manner,

"No, not at all" she responded head shaking in a trance as her eyes turned back to the figure at the gates, "maybe their lost; I don't know why anyone would want to go to that house..."

"Maybe your right" Helen nodded and looked over to the other side of the round where Joyce seemed to have also locked her sights on the newcomer, "What do you think she'll do?" Peg looked in the same direction,

"Ooh… I don't know, I think she's just as confused as the rest of us… I think I'll go and help them" Peg looked back to the stranger who know appeared to be reading a small piece of paper,

"You sure? They look a little shifty" Helen replied, raising an eyebrow,

"Don't judge a book by its cover Helen… I think we all learned that a while ago" Helen bit her lip as Peg softly scolded her. Peg checked her hat and then, picking up her case, walked over to where the stranger stood. Helens eyes followed her; she shook her head and went to speak with Joyce.

As Peg got closer she could see that the figure was made up of a long brown coat and possibly a hooded dusty red jumper underneath. The coat laid loosely over the persons small shoulders stopping just short of the knees, beneath poked out two skinny legs covered in black leggings and black heavy boots.

"Excuse me?" she shouted, her chirpy voice flowing through her white teeth and pink lips. The stranger appeared to gasp at the intrusion of another and backed away, "Oh, no please, I just want to help you" she held out a hand in motion for the stranger to stay. She smiled and sighed in relief when the person did stop, this seemed to be very familiar to her. At first she couldn't tell if the person in front of her was a young girl or boy, nutty brown hair framed the pale face and a dusky pink contoured the cheek bones.

"Are you visiting someone?" Peg asked with interest, hoping to give as much help to the individual as she had too many other people. Strangely the person did not answer, Peg blinked,

"Are you visiting someone who lives around here?" She questioned a little clearer, maybe the person was foreign, there was a pause,

"Yes… Yes I' am" Peg straightened her back and smiled at the person response, from the voice she could tell it was a woman, and by the accent she wasn't American.

"Who are you visiting dear?" Peg beamed a smile; again there was a pause,

"The Inventor…" The woman spoke, her head turning slightly underneath the hood in the direction of the gates. Peg tilted her head a little, confused,

"I'm sorry dear; I don't know anyone who lives around here who goes by that… name"

"He lives here…" The woman insisted, her voice lilted strangely, Scottish maybe?

"No one lives here anymore dear…" Peg responded, a hint of melancholy in her voice, the woman lowered her head as if in disappointment, Peg looked at her with sympathetic eyes, the poor girl looked like she'd recently been in a fight, a layer of bandage covered one of her eyes and a graze down her lip suggested a scuffle.

"What's your name dear?" She thought it best to change subject, the woman didn't respond at first but slowly raised her head, Peg noticed a flash of pale skin dotted with scar marks illuminated as the clouds passed the sun, she felt her heart tense,

"Tabitha"

"W…where are you from Tabitha?" Peg tried to calm her nerves,

"Scotland" Tabitha responded Peg smiled sympathetically towards the girl; she had travelled from Scotland of all places to her quiet suburban neighbourhood to find someone that no longer lived there.

"Oh dear… how long are you here for?" Peg put her fingers up to her lips and chewed on a varnished nail,

"I don't know, as long as I was supposed to be with The Inventor" Tabitha walked slowly over the gates once again and with her right hand pulled against the gate, a soft grunt coming from her lips, Peg rushed over to her.

"Dear I don't think you can get in… it's been locked up ever since the police…" she trailed off, deciding not to flood the girls mind with unhappy memories of her own,

"But I need to get in there" The girl responded, only a slight amount of frustration in her strangely calm voice. Peg sighed stressfully, the girl appeared to be no older than her own daughter, maybe younger. She attempted to grab hold of the girls left arm but upon touching it the girl gasped and quickly moved away, her right hand still grasping one of the slender poles of the gate,

"I don't think you'll be able to get in there my dear, its double locked" Peg pointed to the two padlocks that joined the gates together, Tabitha sighed letting go of the bar, Peg held her hands, "How old are you dear?"

"Seventeen" Tabitha replied, looking back to Peg who was taken aback by how young the girl actually was to have travelled all this way,

"Well… Tabitha, maybe you should come stay with me, we have a spare bedroom?" Peg felt that this was indeed a familiar situation, had she not learnt her lesson? Tabitha shook her head,

"I shall stay here, until I can get past the gates" the girl's voice sounded resolute,

"Are you sure? It gets awful cold out here at night" Peg tilted her head, her expression full of concern,

"I don't feel cold" Tabitha responded, "I shall stay here" The girl slid down the poles to the floor, her right hand still clutching the cold metal,

"Oh… okay" Peg mumbled, slightly confused, "Would you like me to bring you something to eat?" The girl remained silent but slowly raised her head,

"That would be very kind of you" a smile spread across the strange lips, Peg smiled back, hiding her shock at the two long deep scars that crossed diagonally across the young child's lips which had been unnoticeable until bleached with the suns light.

"Alright, I'll be right back!" With that Peg turned on her heels and hurried back to her home, halfway Helen and Joyce caught her up, one of the women on each side of her,

"So who is it, Peg?" Joyce questioned, her slurred voice full of interest,

"Her name is Tabitha" Peg responded, her voice calm,

"Her?" Joyce's voice raised "I'm surprised you could tell what she was with all that material hung on her" She smirked,

"The tone of the voice usually gives it away Joyce" Peg sighed, Joyce huffed, a slight blush appearing on her cheeks,

"So? Is she visiting?" Helen carried on the questions,

"Yes… apparently an Inventor who lives in that house on the hill" Peg quickened pace, the questions becoming all to annoying

"No one's lived in there since… you know who" Joyce exclaimed, whispering the end with emphasis,

"Oh dear, Joyce, he is not some sort of heathen creature" Peg frowned, finally she got to her door, somewhat relieved, "Ladies, Tabitha asked if I could get her some food, will you please leave me be for a while" with that Peg shut the door on her nosy neighbours. She leant against the door, hearing a mumbling of voices fade away. She sighed stressfully, this behaviour was very unlike her usual chirpy personality, the appearance of the girl had brought back memories that she wished to forget. She had loved Edward, very much like a son. But what had happened had left their family alienated from the rest of the residents for quite some time, it had been unusual to her and very soon the memories of the scissor man became all to mournful and filled with regret.

Tabitha rolled a few pebbles underneath her pale hand, the tiny stones massaging her palm. She looked about her, noticing the stares that people gave her, it was not uncommon to her she had always been stared at for certain things. Her left had twitched underneath the heavy material of her coat, the nerves yet properly assembled in her wrist. The metal that at current made up her hand and fingers screeched across the hard ground, to quiet for others to hear. Hopefully once she met The Inventor he would be able to sort that out. From a distance she heard a pair of high heels tapping towards her; she looked up, her eyes still hooded from the sun that hurt them so much. It was the pink lady who had spoken to her earlier and by the looks of it she was carrying a plate.

"Sorry I took so long, we haven't got much in the house in terms of food, it's shopping day tomorrow" Peg giggled, Tabitha felt that the lady was nervous,

"Thank you…" she took the sandwich from the plate and bit into it cautiously, The Architect had told her not to take things from strangers, however this lady appeared harmless to her. The sandwich was simple, cheese with tomato, she'd only seen tomatoes in books, it was a new experience to her but it tasted fine and seeing as she hadn't eaten anything since her departure it was a welcome offering.

"Where did The Inventor go?" She asked, appearing to startle Peg a little, she had enjoyed watching the young girl eat; it was a little reminder of her own daughter,

"Oh… I don't know dear, no one has ever gone in or out of that house" She didn't like to lie to the girl, but any mention of someone once living there may have roused hopes that would be soon shattered if she ever ventured in. Tabitha stood up, handing the plate back to Peg who suddenly snapped out of her wanderings as she felt the coolness of the plate touch her skin. She looked to the girl who now hand one of the heavy padlocks in her hand,

"If no one has ever gone in or out… then how can you say that no one lives here? Maybe they go in and out at night" Tabitha's voice was calm and sounded more as if she were talking to herself, Peg remained silent interested in what the girl intended to do. Peg stepped closer, watching the girl finger the crude padlock, underneath the girls long coat she heard a sharp clicking and slowly the girl raised her left arm from underneath her coat. Peg nearly screamed, the dangerous but small implements that made up the girls hand were all to familiar, she clapped her hand over her mouth, Tabitha looked at her, her lips open slightly,

"Do not tell anyone… please" Peg shook her head in agreement and let down her hand, "I've come here to be completed… I wish that the location was not situated in such a populated area… it was not how The Architect pictured it" Tabitha bit her lip, raising one of the daggered fingers up to the lock, Peg watched with wide eyes as the girl twisted the mechanisms inside the padlock, unlocking it slowly. Eventually the first lock fell to the ground, clanking against the old gate as it did. The second one was quicker than the first and after a slight tug Tabitha opened forth the gate. Peg merely stared at her, unsure of what reaction was best appropriate. The girl turned round to face her once again, this time Peg could see her face perfectly and what she saw was tainted perfection, much like in Edwards face,

"Do not follow me…" Tabitha requested calmly, Peg nodded, "Your friends are too nosy, they will ask more questions when you return" Pegs second nod was rewarded with a small smile "Please secure the locks again… I haven't broken, no one is to know I'm here" the girl turned to walk up the long forgotten stairs. Peg was left dumbfounded.


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2.

Tabitha treaded with caution, barbs and spikes from some of the wild plant life caught at her long coat. Small shafts of light trickled in-between the gaps in the leaves overhead giving the pathway up to the house an almost dark fairy tale atmosphere. The stairs finally ended, becoming more uneven as she reached another gate, this time unlocked and more intricate than the one previous. She slid her fingers over the bars and pushed the heavy gate open, a stiff creak emanating from its hinges. Looking about her surroundings she noticed the most surreal garden she had ever witnessed. Topiaries of different sizes were scattered about the large garden, the strangest of designs, horses, dragons even people, a particularly large topiary stood proud in the centre in the shape of a hand. The lush green grass and mesmerising colours of the flowers was a contrast to the seemingly grey drab of the tall house. She stretched her neck to look up at the towering walls of the old building. She noticed areas of the garden which had started to become unruly, the cats tail was bushier than she thought perhaps it ought to be and the dragon was growing hair out of its nose… or was it meant to be fire? She'd never seen anything like this, Scotland was not known for good weather and plants like this would only thrive in controlled greenhouses. Her footfalls crunched as the surface shifted from broken paving to pebbles and her movements became languid as she took in the wonderland garden before her. A gaze down to some pansies brought her attention to a brown stain upon the stone slabs near the front door,

"Blood…" Tabitha mumbled to herself, her fingertips circling but never touching the slithering old pool. She knew blood she'd seen enough of it in her short like, fresh seeping, hours old and caking, year's ancient and brown black but never, never going away. Around the blood and scattered further were shards of glass, her one good eye shifted to the door and then further up where a window had been broken. It was long and narrow and big enough for a person to fall through, somebody had died here.

"_Maybe that woman was right_" Tabitha thought as she paced casually up to the doors, noticing the decay of much of the brickwork, she turned back to face the garden, "_Although somebody must obviously still be here… the garden looks like it was only just tended to yesterday_", she pouted softly and turned her attentions back to the huge wooden doors. With very little effort she was able to open the left door, its cumbersome weight dragging against the marble floor. Tabitha stepped into the darkened, cavernous room of the building, jumping a little from the light tap her shoes made on the cold chequered floor. Her eyes grew wide at the sight of the place it was so… bare. Her eyes lazily wandered around the room, remnants of a machine rusted in the middle of the room. Further back there was a large stone fireplace, a dining table with a decaying tablecloth – old tumblers still standing on its sun stained fabric. Tabitha walked over to the strange machine; she stroked the bars and rounded cylinders with her pale hand, feeling the roughness of the disused objects. Next she moved to the old table and picked up one of the tumblers, a bottle next to it had the syrupy remains of an expensive sherry,

"Just like the Architect…" She smiled at the similarity, the same tumbler too. The only difference between the residence of the Inventor and the Architect was the absence of trinkets, books, junk and collectibles. The Architects house was cluttered with anything and everything, a place where Tabitha felt warm, here she felt cold. Carefully she put the tumbler down and before turning to explore more of the house stroked the sherry bottle affectionately. Her left hand twitched as she suddenly got the feeling that she was in the presence of another. She turned around fully, scanning the room until her eyes spied a figure halfway down a grand staircase. The stranger stared at her, hauntingly similar to herself.

"You… you are not The Inventor… are you?" Her voice sounded strange to her, echoing off the cavernous room's walls. The stranger did not move, its eyes still fixed on the young girl. Tabitha felt peculiarly exposed the man's dark emotionless eyes boring into her own, she lowered her head and the hood of her jacket covered more of her face, eye contact unnerved her; it usually brought something nasty,

"Please…" Tabitha jumped as she heard the man's voice young and like her own, minus the accent, "Leave…" His voice was melancholy, without fear but full of distrust. Tabitha lifted her head up to see that the man had gone, presumably up the stairs and with determination she headed quickly to the stairs leaving the man's request fully ignored. Ascending the stairs proved difficult for the young girl, the stairs surprisingly uneven and cracked as her boots provided her with the elegance of an elephant. Certain steps wobbled threateningly underfoot and Tabitha had to slow her pace in risk of falling over. The stairs led quite a way to another floor, the walls the same drab grey stone. Many doors were locked, entry near impossible from the hideously large padlocks that hung at the bolts. Upon continuing to explore the second floor she came across another set of stairs, more confined and steep, a pale light seeped its way down from the mysterious third floor. Tabitha proceeded to the next floor, determined to find the man who had so mysteriously appeared and then vanished without so much as an introduction. The steep steps opened up into a wide and surreal attic like room, the roof all but stripped away by weather and age. Although not capable of breath, Tabitha felt her insides turn cold at the temperature change in the room; she clutched the neck of her coat closer to her body and stepped slowly into the middle of the room. The floor was slightly wet, she noticed slowly melting gigantic columns of ice in a far corner and her eyebrows knotted to make a frown, this place was a maze of confusion. A crudely built bed had been made within the confines of an old fireplace, pictures from newspapers and photographs were scattered about the inside walls and pillars. Tabitha walked over to the strange little gallery, noticing a picture of someone familiar – it looked like the Architect, but thinner, the features gaunt and sharp although there was kindness in his eyes the same that her own guardian had. Again came the feeling of her being watched and she turned her head to the direction of the ice blocks, the same man stood there studying her with his eyes. Tabitha lowered her head once more and stood, picture still in hand.

"Who are you?" She questioned a slight urgency in her usually calm voice. The man did not answer, but remained still his eyes continuing to fix on her, "Why do you have this picture?" She held the photo out to the man, her frustration rising from his lack of co-operation.

"Please leave…" the voice still the same sent shivers up Tabitha's spine, her head snapped up security blanket thrown to the wind,

"I will not leave! Not until you tell me who you are and what you're doing here? This is the Inventors house; he is a very important man you shouldn't be trespassing in his home!" This struck a nerve, Tabitha noticed the man's expression turn unreadable to a confused frown.

"Who are you?" the man asked, his voice slightly shaky, Tabitha sighed,

"My name is Tabitha Longleat" Tabitha replied politely, anger melting at the promise of some form of communication,

"Why are you here?" The man questioned again,

"To see the Inventor…"

"Why?" The man's voice sounded older than hers, he must have been older than her although he looked the same age from the distance between them,

"That… it is between myself and the Inventor" Tabitha was unsure of whether to tell the actual reason to the stranger, he looked insane in her opinion, possibly an intruder to the house whom had made it his place of residence.

"You can't see him" The man's voice softened,

"Why not?" Tabitha growled, frustrated at the man's insistence,

"He's dead"

"How do you know?"

"I saw him die" Tabitha blinked at the unready news spoke to her, the man appeared suddenly upset and Tabitha became unsure of how to respond "…you said you wanted to see him… why?" she jumped at the man's question,

"I- I… need to be completed…" Her stomach fluttered painfully at the news of the Inventors death, but even more so that her journey had been in vain,

"Completed?" The man's voice snapped her from her own thoughts,

"Yes" she replied, the man still looked as confused as before until, in a way of example she raised her hood and lifted her left hand. Tabitha became nervous, many times had she exposed herself to other people, hoping to be accepted, many of these times were when she had only just been created and many times she had been abused and reviled. The man stared at the sharp implements that made up her hand and the bandage that covered the area where her eye should be. The lack of her left eye made her vision a slight weakness and all she saw was the man disappear behind one of the ice blocks,

"Hey, wait!" without much thought she ran up to the blocks of ice, looking behind each until she came to the ones nearest the wall. There she found the man, at first he did not notice her presence his eyes a swarm of emotions and he jumped when he finally noticed the shorter girl stood by his side. Tabitha now noticed the full similarities between them; his skin was pale like ivory with scattered scars across it, more than those that Tabitha herself had collected in her few years but with the same intense deepness. His lips were so similar to her own, 'a cupid's bow' her Architect had told her, dusted with a deep pink-purple. His body was almost encased within tight leather straps, a similar design to what she had possessed until the Architect had finally finished her body. Now the leather straps only covered her left arm. Her eyes then lowered to something very familiar, his hands were made up of sharp knives, scissors and other metallic instruments, longer than her own unfinished hand but just as dangerous,

"You…you are… like me…" Tabitha's mind was racing like a stallion, a mix of fear, happiness and confusion. The man nodded, shivering slightly. She raised her right hand, braving to touch the man's face. He flinched as her warm hand touched his icily cold cheek but then seemed to relax. Tabitha felt familiarity with the man, something spiritually rather than logical.

"What is your name?" Tabitha spoke softly, leaning her left side against the cold ice block; she wondered if the man could even feel the coldness of it, how complete was he?

"Edward…" he replied, his voice now calmer. The name seemed even more familiar to her, a name her guardian had said to her, a name passed through her lips once before,

"Edward…" she repeated, "I know you now… from before…" Edward looked at her, confused once again,

"You know me?…" Edward questioned, his eyes still emotionless, black pools,

"Yes…" Tabitha smiled, remembering upon her first day of awakening what her guardian, The Architect, had told her about herself and why she was created and why she was special, but one thing was especially clear to her, "Edward… you are my brother"


	4. Chapter 3

The two dark figures sat between the pillars of the huge fireplace, Tabitha felt a spring digging into her leg but ignored it easily as she watched her newly found brother silently thinking. It was a strange action that she herself had never done. Sometimes she felt her mental state drain, like she was shutting down and she would sit for hours until someone came to her. But in her brother she saw ideas and memories ticking away, his eyes showed all.

"You have lived here all your life?" Tabitha asked, the silence now becoming far to uneasy, Edward blinked and looked at her,

"Yes" He still looked in shock, Tabitha bit her lip. The man appeared much older than her but acted as if he were only a child; the innocence in his face was not hard to miss.

"I bet it used to be so luxurious here… I mean when The Inventor was here, although he does look kind of drab himself so maybe not… oh, I'm sorry" She chewed the inside of her lip _'digging yourself a very big grave Tabby' _she thought "heres your photo back…" she handed the delicate photograph back to Edward who had apparently been unaffected by her rambling,

"No, it's always been like this" he looked about the cavernous room they sat within and then down to the image now in his hand. Tabitha blinked quite dumbfounded, how anybody could live in such a gaunt environment? But as she thought she could have asked a similar question about The Architects cluttered living environment. "Who made you?" The question was abrupt and made Tabitha's mind stutter. She looked at Edward, obvious intrigue on his face that made her feel quite exposed,

"The Architect…" She fiddled with the hem of her worn coat sleeve. The word 'made' had always reminded her that she wasn't a human. She was created from metal, plastics, various liquids, and synthetic organs. Those synthetic organs belonged to plant life and animals, even they were not her own.

"What's his name?" the soft voice spoke again,

"I don't know, I just call him Daddy" Tabitha replied, wondering to herself why she had never asked. There was silence again, Tabitha fidgeted she hated the random uncomfortable silences. It was like watching the sea; the waves would start far out, quiet and then gain momentum, crashing against the harbour but then slowly fade back out again.

"Where do you come from?" Edward spoke up, his voice laced with genuine intrigue, "you sound… different"

"Scotland" Tabitha smiled,

"That's England" Edward stated,

"Um, yes… although it's still kind of separate… I think you'd like it there – it's open and there's lots of woodland" Tabitha thought back to her home in Ayr, shaking the feeling of homesickness away quickly, "hey! You should come back with me… um… I mean if you want to…" Edward blinked in surprise, Tabitha felt him shift a little on the makeshift bed the springs clanking harshly. Tabitha turned her eye away, shortly followed by her head her,

"I'm sorry – I don't think sometimes. I suppose you've never been out of here before"

"I have…" Edward mumbled, sadness tainting his voice, without much warning Tabitha felt the opposite side of the small bed rise setting her off balance slightly. She looked to the side, noticing Edward walking away towards the ice blocks again.

"What? Edward! I'm sorry, please come back!" Tabitha stumbled to stand up, following Edward as he disappeared. She searched behind all the ice-blocks, counting ten in total so as not to repeat herself, "Edward… where did you go?" she mumbled to herself, scratching the back of her head in confusion. She leant against a nearby ice block, feeling the cold moisture lightly soak into her coat. Her eyes wandered down, her lips forming into a small pout at her inability to keep her mouth closed '_I just had to go and scare him off…' _she thought while heavily sighing. Her eyes met with an unusual object on the floor she walked over to it and knelt down realising that the object was a large handle to a trap door,

"So that's where you went to is it?" Tabitha mumbled, a smile spreading on her face. With difficulty Tabitha managed to open the door, mumbling a few curses at the heaviness of it. There were a set of stairs that were old and worn, the sign of use evident from the curvature in the middle. Tabitha bit her lip as she cautiously descended down the stairs part of her expecting something to jump out at her. The stairs were fewer in number than she anticipated. As she walked down she noticed a rectangular glow – the end. Slowly she opened the door with a creak, cringing at the sound. Tabitha poked her head from the door, waiting to be bludgeoned by a blunt object by a not so happy Edward. Instead, as her eyes scanned this new room she noticed that the pale man was quite far away gazing out of the enormous windows. Tabitha seized her chance and silently entered the room fully. It appeared to be a bedroom, old like the rest of the house but this room looked lived in. With tentative steps she walked over to where the young man stood and with inward breath placed her small hand on his shoulder,

"Edward?" the man jumped and turned around but did not retreat, simply staring at Tabitha with a blank expression, "I'm sorry, sometimes I say things without thinking" she smiled apologetically,

"You don't need to apologise" Edward responded, turning his head back to look out the window. The clouds had now opened and a casual descent of rain wet the neighbourhood,

"Looks like the rains followed me here" Tabitha chuckled, stepping closer to Edward who remained silent, "Now I wish it would take me back" she sighed, walking away from Edward and sitting on the nearby bed awakening dust as she did.

"You asked me to come with you" Edward stated, keeping his eyes looking out to the heavens,

"Yes…" Tabitha blushed at the intimacy in the request. She had only met Edward little than an hour ago and the idea that he was her brother was not enough to form a relationship in that short amount of time,

"Why?" Edward's question brought Tabitha from her wandering thoughts; she looked up to see Edward looking at her,

"Well… you're all alone here… and in some way we are your family" Tabitha played with her hair nervously, not wanting to make eye contact,

"I can't leave…" Edward mumbled,

"Why?" there was silence, Tabitha eyed Edward up and down, noticing the nostalgic look upon Edwards's profile. She ran a hand across the cool sheets of the bed, her fingers running across worn holes and frayed stitch work. She stood, coming to meet Edward again this time to stand in from of him "Well, I 'am here for two more days, Master Edward you must show me around" she raised a hand as she had seen in The Architects etiquette books, Edward looked down at her and a small smile played on his face, he took her hand remembering his own teachings and led her from the room.


	5. Chapter 4

Tabitha awoke with the smell of old linen and dust, but the smell was welcomed – a sort of lived in smell that made everything seem that bit cosier. The morning sun seeped through her long eyelashes and she turned her head away from the assaulting brightness. Her eyes settled on a familiar face, Edward staring back at her with inquisitive eyes,

"Hello Tabitha" he said politely, Tabitha smiled back at the pale face. The memories of the last few days had been interesting to say the least. Edward had showed Tabitha almost every room of the enormous mansion, taking her request a little too literally. The library had been an exquisite find in her opinion, books being a love of hers since The Architect first taught her to read. Many of the books had been unknown to her, to much writing and not enough pictures in her opinion. Edward had showed her some of his favourites, anatomy books that had in-depth pictures of the human body. Tabitha had pored over them for hours after that, reading and re-reading the dynamics of the human heart and how the nervous system worked. As well as this a small collection of children's books with beautiful watercolour pictures of gypsies and fairies – wondrous images that Tabitha gazed at in just as much interest as the anatomy texts.

The rest of the house looked like it had been frozen in time, jars with herbs, spices and jams were still lined up on shelves in the kitchen and a knife and chopping board still rested on the marble countertop, years of dust had made a silhouette of the knife upon the board. What was once a living room and study combined had an almost eerie feel to it, sheets covering most of the furniture and the large fireplace had cobwebs so vast that birds may have met their fate in them.

As the night descended upon the small neighbourhood and the mansion the siblings had retired to the large bedroom in which Tabitha now awoke to. They had discussed (Tabitha mostly) about Scotland and both The Inventor and Architect, mysterious men who had seemed to be in their own world of fantasy. However parts of her life back in Scotland she found unable to reveal to her newly discovered brother. Matters that may intimidate him and so she forcefully let them slip her mind. Tabitha now lay, staring into the dark eyes of her Brother, trying to work out what he was thinking about but this time he would not let her in.

"What are you thinking about?" Tabitha peacefully queried, sleep still blurring her mind,

"Your eye" Edward responded, gaze unaltered.

"Oh… what about it?" Tabitha blinked and looked away at the feeling of being studied.

"Why is it not there?" Tabitha paused momentarily stunned at the question, her face hardened a little,

"The same reason you avoid what's outside I shouldn't think" Her response was vague and she knew it, but that grimy stain in her life was something private. She thought Edward understood as the cogs were whirring again his eyes having found and interesting part of the bed,

"…people" it was almost a whisper, she nodded.

Tabitha sat up and looked over to the dirty windows; the sky was pale blue and clear of clouds and a contrast to her home town of near relentless rain clouds. She sighed at the thought of leaving tomorrow, with Edward or not she would miss the endless blue that America provided. However her mind then wandered to the thought of her family back in Scotland and the warm comfort it provided, Edward was her brother but was tainted by seclusion and silence.

"Shall we go outside?" Tabitha jumped at the abrupt question and turned to see Edward standing at the other side of the bed. Tabitha nodded and stood up to follow Edward to the gardens.

The smell of flora and the fresh air cleaned Tabitha's lungs of the dust they had inhaled upon her awakening. The breeze was light and lifted her hair lazily as she pattered down the stone stairs following Edward. Her eye focused on the beautiful topiaries that were scattered throughout the garden, each individual and unique,

"You made all these Edward?" her eye taking in all that was available to her,

"Yes" Edward smiled, the hint of innocent pride lacing his voice,

"Their amazing, I've never seen anything like them" She studied the tiny leaves of the topiaries and how they made up the entire structure, the large hand in the centre left her in awe, "I'm sure daddy would love to have such a creation in his garden"

"Thank you" Edward smiled widened, as he looked at his creations

"I'm sure once people in Ayr saw your work they'd want you to do it for them to!" Tabitha looked to Edward noticing the smile disappear, "what's wrong?" Tabitha tilted her head,

"I've done that before, it didn't work" Edward mumbled,

"For the people down there?" Tabitha looked past the gates and Edward nodded, "I don't know how someone could not like these…" she faded off, noticing the familiar expression that crossed across Edwards face, "um... can you show me?" Tabitha blurted out the first thing she could think of. Edward looked to her somewhat puzzled

"Can you show me how you make them?" Tabitha smiled to somewhat loosen the tension a big toothy grin that she'd used on many occasion to sweeten a deal, the smile was returned however with a little more modesty,

"Yes" Edward looked about himself trying to find any available bush that he hadn't already sculpted, he spied one beneath one of the mansions towering windows, a medium sized bush that was a glorious dark green. He walked over to it and Tabitha followed in excitement. She sat down to the side of the green bush, watching Edward analyse the size and decide what he would sculpt (after analysing the length of Edward's knives she shuffled back a bit more).

She watched with interest as his eyes roamed over the foliage before he finally took the first snip, she jumped at the quick contact of metal and twig. Edward worked fast, faster than she had seen anybody ever work and the feeling of such energy excited her. Crude natural rounds became precise edges to what was now taking form and as it took shape Edward slowed, choosing more carefully where he snipped.

"It's a cat!" Tabitha gasped, smiling at the just finished ears, Edward looked to her,

"Tabby Cat" He smiled at the girl's enthusiasm. He shuffled to the side allowing Tabitha to get a closer look. She eagerly took the offer, kneeling right in front of the abnormally large cat with refined pointed ears and a swishing tail that curled to touch the frame of the window. Her fingers delicately stroked areas of the foliage, tiny leaves which felt like silky fur,

"Its beautiful" she whispered her eyes never leaving the sculpture,

"Thank you" Edward replied, smiling bashfully despite his remembrance of constant praise when he lived within the society below his home. Tabitha turned her head to look at him; with the blush his skin almost looked human. She could see that The Inventor had meant Edward to be a young man, early twenties if that but his seclusion had almost reversed his age especially in his dark eyes which could have possibly been the most human thing about him. She paused in her thoughts of young man before her and frowned slightly her fingers absently padding at the tabby's ears.

"Edward, how long have you been here?" she mused, tilting her head – the young man blinked momentarily unprepared for the question,

"I don't know..." he looked out to where some of the bushes allowed the view of the small neighbourhood below to be seen, "I remember when those houses weren't there" he mumbled, his mind working back to those first years.

"Oh my... you have been here a while" Tabitha commented, "I'm rather young compared to you" she giggled but then excused herself for the rudeness. Edward appeared puzzled,

"You were made recently?"

"No..." Tabitha bit her lip "Maybe thirty years ago I'm not too sure – but my daddy says I'm sixteen... I don't really know how that works"

"I'm not sure... how old I'm supposed to be" Edward replied with little emotion, it was more a statement

"Doesn't really matter as long as you're happy with yourself" Tabitha smiled reassuringly and lay back on the grass to stare up at the sky – clouds had formed over the sun and the dull pain in her eyes subsided. The grass smelled like home; the wet, mildew scent which followed a heavy down pour. Her heavy leather coat protected her from the damp of the ground and she rolled languidly onto her side watching the tender blades of grass that tickled her face. She missed the woodland back home, The Architect lived within the confines of a dense forest about half a mile from the village of Ayr and the forests had always held her safest and warmest memories. She'd read a book about faeries for the first time before she'd had her right hand and her left leg had been suffering from twitching. The wispy illustrations of tiny fluttering people had left her mesmerised, she vividly remembered asking the Architect if their forest had faeries; he told her that once she was better she could go out and look for herself, she still was searching now '_I'll find you someday'._

"C-can I look at you're…" Tabitha rolled onto her back to see Edward now crouched down next to her, an uneasy look on his face,

"Can you look at my?" She eyed him curiously,

"You're….. Hand" Edward nodded his head towards where her right hand lay casually upon her stomach; it twitched as if hearing its name,

"Um… okay" Tabitha blinked, sitting up and crossing her legs as she raised her hand in front of Edward. It was a silent and awkward moment when Edward tentatively moved his eyes closer looking as if her hand was the most precious thing he'd ever seen. Carefully he put a scissor digit to the palm of her hand, sliding it gently against the surface. Tabitha steadied herself knowing how dangerous those knives where as her own creaked together. His knives moved delicately to the upper side of her hand and guided it to move downward, his eyes widening as he saw nails, articulation and bumps and ridges from what could only be considered veins.

"When?" Edward moved his gaze from her hand to her face,

"Um… about a year ago" Tabitha pondered; it hadn't felt that long ago, "It was a present"

"Why only one?" Edward looked to Tabitha's left hand as it twitched and shifted as if without her knowing,

"There was a fire, it stopped the operation and we had to get out" she felt the butterflies in her stomach once more as the memory filtered in, "Daddy's work isn't understood by all the people that we live near"

"I understand" Edward smiled and it warmed Tabitha's heart, as the silence fell once more she felt a cold spot on her hand and a light pour of rain began,

"You want to head in?" She asked to Edward whose attention was to the heavens "You might rust" she added as he drew his gaze back to her. He nodded and stood, his leather suit allowed the rain run off in tiny rivulets and made the buckles glisten, Tabitha liked shiny things.

Casually walking to the dryness of the indoors her eye once again froze on the pool of blood. Blood was strange to her, the Architect said it was the life fuel of all things, but Tabitha didn't bleed red did that make her dead?

"Tabitha?"

"Blood" she looked up at Edward who was just on the outside of the door waiting for her, he hadn't heard her,

"You're getting wet" Edward hadn't noticed what she'd seen, _or he didn't want to_ Tabitha thought,

"Oh yeah, daydreaming!" Tabitha grinned, catching up as Edward closed the door.


End file.
